On 23 September, La Scala opened its doors for dance for the first time since February. It was a gala which had four showings, the last being yesterday. Social distancing in the auditorium was respected, as with the concerts which experimented with live theatre before the summer, by limiting the public to 800 – usually, 2,000 seats are available. Some boxes had just one … [Read more...] about [Review and Photos] La Scala’s Ballet Gala sees dance return to its stage, with Ferri, Bonelli, Zakharova and Bolle
Alessandra Ferri
La Scala announces its opening gala programme
La Scala has announced the programme, though not with full casting, of its Ballet Gala which marks the return of the company to the stage after the cancellation of the theatre's programming in March due to the coronavirus. The four-evening run begins on 23 September and stars the company’s étoiles Svetlana Zakharova and Roberto Bolle, guests Alessandra Ferri and Federico … [Read more...] about La Scala announces its opening gala programme
A look at the English National Ballet School’s Summer Performance 2020
Courageously, the English National Ballet School has worked with its students to produce new works – marvellously put together with some impressive editing by BalletBoyz and Manilla Productions – to create an end of year show, showcase, and celebration. The resulting film is given a bonus lift by Alessandra Ferri wishing the students good luck for their futures and adding some … [Read more...] about A look at the English National Ballet School’s Summer Performance 2020
#OurHouseToYourHouse: tonight’s Royal Opera House’s 2nd live concert and next week’s programme
2nd Concert: Saturday 20 June Tonight is the second of the Live from Covent Garden concerts at 7.30pm BST which will be broadcast via the Royal Opera House website from Covent Garden. These are the first live performances at the Royal Opera House since the building closed its doors to the public on 17 March. Tonight’s concert includes a performance of Albert Schönberg’s … [Read more...] about #OurHouseToYourHouse: tonight’s Royal Opera House’s 2nd live concert and next week’s programme
[VIDEO] La Scala’s latest interviews with Roberto Bolle and Juan Diego Flórez
Milan’s La Scala may be closed, but the theatre’s Digital Department is still working hard. Five weeks ago, Dominique Meyer, the theatre’s new intendant, started a series of interviews with artists who work in the theatre. The musical director, Riccardo Chailly, was his first ‘guest’, and since then he has talked to the director Davide Livermore, principal dancers Nicoletta … [Read more...] about [VIDEO] La Scala’s latest interviews with Roberto Bolle and Juan Diego Flórez
American Ballet Theatre: Together Tonight – an 80th Anniversary YouTube celebration
May 2020 was to have been a special month for the American Ballet Theatre – the time to celebrate its 80th anniversary. American Ballet Theatre – known as Ballet Theatre from 1939 until 1957 – was founded in 1939 by Lucia Chase and Richard Pleasant and its first performance was on 11 January 1940. Chase was its director, together with Oliver Smith, from 1945 to 1980. Mikhail … [Read more...] about American Ballet Theatre: Together Tonight – an 80th Anniversary YouTube celebration
Interview with The Royal Ballet’s Lauren Cuthbertson – so much passion
On 14 March 2020, The Royal Ballet’s principal dancer Lauren Cuthbertson was dancing Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty on the stage of the Mariinsky Theatre. A rare honour. She was partnered by former Royal Ballet dancer and Mariinsky principal dancer Xander Parish and cheered on by her mother, her boyfriend and his parents. Two days later, they were returning to London on the … [Read more...] about Interview with The Royal Ballet’s Lauren Cuthbertson – so much passion
Alessandra Ferri: The art of becoming a couple is the gamble of a lifetime
Alessandra Ferri has been interpreting Eleonora Duse in John Neumeier’s ballet Duse, most recently in Venice at the beginning of February. Does she feel she has anything in common with Italy’s most famous 19th-century actress? Much, starting with my approach to a work, stripping away the façades that for me have no part in an art that is an internal journey. You must know … [Read more...] about Alessandra Ferri: The art of becoming a couple is the gamble of a lifetime
Dancing Times, September edition – with Gramilano’s Danza in Italia column including Woolf Works at La Scala and a Glass triple bill in Rome
The latest issue of Dancing Times is out tomorrow. In September’s issue, I cover Wayne McGregor’s “amazing” Woolf Works at La Scala with Alessandra Ferri giving a “frighteningly intense” performance alongside an excellent cast from La Scala Ballet including “powerful and touching” performances from Timofej Andrijashenko as Septimus and Claudio Coviello as Evans, and Gioacchino … [Read more...] about Dancing Times, September edition – with Gramilano’s Danza in Italia column including Woolf Works at La Scala and a Glass triple bill in Rome
Paolo Bordogna answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… singers’ edition
Q&A in italiano When did you start singing? On the staircase of my apartment building, there was an echo that added force to my voice; I listened to it as though it were my voice. It was perhaps a way to conquer my shyness. Why did you start singing? One of my classmates invited me to join a choir and I was struck by the miracle with which so many different voices … [Read more...] about Paolo Bordogna answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… singers’ edition